1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mobile terminals. More particularly, the present invention relates to a mobile terminal for synchronizing components of a document separately.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Mobile terminals, such as handheld computers, cellular telephones, tablet computers etc., are typically used to view and manipulate various databases, such as personal information management (PIM) data, emails, and web sites. The mobile terminal is typically synchronized when the databases are updated, for example, when the user modifies PIM data on a target computer or when the contents of a web site change. FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art technique for synchronizing a mobile terminal 2 over a local connection 6 (e.g., a USB connection) to databases stored on a target computer 4 as well as web pages stored on the Internet.
FIG. 2 illustrates various configurations for remotely synchronizing the mobile terminal 2 to the target computer 4 via the Internet 8. The mobile terminal may access the Internet 8 over telephone lines 14 using a modem communicating with an Internet service provider (ISP) 16. Alternatively, the mobile terminal 2 may access the Internet 8 via a wireless connection, such as a cellular provider network (CPN) 18, or a wireless access point (WAP) 20 such as Bluetooth, 802.11b, or HomeRF. In yet another configuration, the mobile terminal 2 may access the Internet 8 through a remote computer 22 connected to the Internet 8. In each of these configurations all of the synchronization data is routed through the target computer 4, creating a bottleneck that can significantly extend the synchronization session. This is undesirable because it increases the access latency to the synchronized data, and for a remote connection (e.g., a wireless connection), it can increase the connection fees and decrease the battery life of the mobile terminal 2.
The prior art has suggested various methods of filtering the synchronization data in order to reduce the amount of data transmitted during a synchronization session. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,101,531 suggests to filter emails with respect to their size. In one instance, large attachments are stripped from emails in order to reduce the amount of information transmitted to the mobile terminal. If after receiving the body of the email the user desires to receive the attachment, the user can override the filtering mechanism by requesting that the entire email, including the attachment, be transmitted during the current session. Otherwise, the attachment is deleted from the email server unless the user elects to save the entire email for downloading during a subsequent session. This is undesirable since it requires the user to download the entire email, including the attachment, in one session or forego reading the attachment.
There is, therefore, a need to improve upon the current processes for synchronizing a mobile terminal to synchronization data, such as web sites, emails, and PIM data.